The late Emma Wilson Brown said that old John Purdy could be heard before he was seen on the streets of Bloomfield, tapping his cane and bellowing with his strong voice.
It wasn’t unusual for him to stop on a corner and let loose with a rebel yell.

The Beard family and related lines have been around Spencer and Nelson counties for a mighty long time. In The Terre Haute (Indiana) Morning Star, Oct. 17, 1904, there appeared a tribute to John L. Beard, 80, and his wife Judith Frances Wells, 75, who had been married for 56 years.
In a copy of the newspaper appears a picture of the couple, but because of the age of the paper, the photograph is not very sharp. The couple lived in Vigo County, Ind.

It is said that people who seem obsessed with history live with their minds in the past. I am happy to report that I have just a passing interest in the subject and really don’t care how old everything is, who lived where and when and if their great grandparents had a pet chimp. But I wonder what the chimp’s name was?
My uncle Gilbert had a parrot that cursed, but that’s another story.

It’s not easy to find biographical sketches about Spencer County people and that’s why Perrin’s collection is so valuable. Here’s a look at some Spencer County families from “Kentucky: A History of the State.” Perrin, Battle & Kniffin, 6th ed.,1887, Spencer Co. References to the current time are to 1887.
M.C. ALLOWAY was born in Nelson County Feb. 23, 1837, the second of a family of nine children born to Joel and Elizabeth (Grigsby) Alloway.

On a rise just north of Taylorsville, above the intersection of Yoder-Tipton Road and Kentucky 55-155 stands the Jacob Yoder home that was originally called “Beechland,” but was renamed “Vaucluse” by Yoder’s son-in-law, Frenchman David Roselle Poignand.

Recalls on food items, even baby food, seem to be happening with increasing frequency. It can be scary to see a report on the news, and realize that the item being recalled is in the pantry. It’s even worse if the item in question was just fed to the baby. One way to feel more secure about the safety of baby food is to make it at home.

The buzzards roost on the roof, reflecting the eventual fate of the Wigginton House at Little Union.
The house, just down the road from the Little Union Baptist Church in southern Spencer County, appears to have been built by Elijah and Anna (Riley) Wigginton around the time the county was formed.

I’ve heard people talk about ghosts and other hobgoblins, but I’ve never seriously researched the subject. Twice in my life I have seen things that could not be easily explained. People tell me stories about images they’ve seen and sometimes try to link the sightings to an event in history, usually within their family.

Editor’s note: The following is a continuation of local historian Tom Watson’s column on historical figures important to Spencer County. See last week’s edition of The Spencer Magnet for part one. Tom Watson also included the following note about last week's article: "Thanks to Charles Darnell for spotting a typo in the original article of March 9. John Speed was not a Confederate. It should have stated that he joined the Union service and was with Sherman's Army during the march to the sea."

Editor’s note: Check out next week’s Spencer Magnet for a continuation of this article.
Over the years, several people have made names for themselves in this area, both before 1824 when Spencer County was formed, and since that year. The Speed family and its connection with Spencer County is mentioned in “ Lawyers and Lawmakers of Kentucky,” by H. Levin, editor, 1897. It was published by Lewis Publishing Company of Chicago and reprinted by the Southern Historical Press.

Family Resource Center, located inside Spencer County Elementary School, helps families in need of clothing, food, affordable housing, paying bills and other necessities that can stand in the way of their children’s education.